As adoptions go, picking a Stanley Cup contender, after your favourite team has been eliminated, is easier than bringing home a new dog.

For openers, there’s less of a commitment. Depending on the age at adoption, you can have a four-legged friend for anywhere up to 15 years.

The Stanley Cup final, on the other hand, will be played in early June. If your adopted team makes it, we’re talking eight weeks, max. It’s a spring fling – longer than a Kim Kardashian marriage, much shorter than the love affair that develops with man’s best friend.

Plus you can be fickle.

Pick a team for the opening round. If they’re eliminated, transfer your loyalty for the conference semifinal round. If those guys die, lather, rinse and repeat for the final two rounds.

If your appreciation of hockey transcends loyalty to the hometown team, however, this is – hit it, Andy Williams – the most wonderful time of the year. The best players on the best teams are playing their best hockey, and appreciation of excellence can help salve the wounds inflicted by too many disappointing nights at the Bell Centre.

You can watch the games as a disinterested observer. Sitting on their hands, however, is an unnatural position for sports fans.

Impartiality is a necessary qualification for supreme court judges, United Nations observers and people who earn their living wearing striped jerseys. But unless you’ve got a whistle in your mouth, neutrality blows.

There’s a lot of hockey to be played. If you’re going to be watching it, you need a team to support.

To foster rooting interest, here’s a survey of teams that a true bleu-blanc-rouge fan might consider backing, if only for a little while:

OTTAWA SENATORS

They are our neighbours, a 90-minute drive up the 417. And the Senators’ bounce-back season offers hope the Canadiens can accomplish a similar turnaround in 2012-13. Daniel Alfredsson is a class act, and Erik Karlsson is one of the NHL’s most exciting players. While you may hate Chris Neil, you’d love to see him – or at least someone like him – in a Canadiens jersey.

Cautionary note: If Ottawa advances to the final, they might have that schmuck in the centurion costume stand outside their room again.

Adoption indicator (AI): 8.5

ST. LOUIS BLUES

An excellent, well-coached team that visited the Bell Centre on Jan. 10 and inflicted as thorough a whuppin’ as the Canadiens suffered this season. The home team did not touch the puck all night. And how great would it be if Jaro Halak came off the bench to key a Cup win?

Cautionary note: We’d never hear the end of it from obnoxious Carey Price-bashers.

AI: 8

PHILADELPHIA FLYERS

I know: it’s heretical to even consider cheering for the erstwhile Broad Street Bullies. But if you like hockey, you love Claude Giroux. Along with Max Talbot, Daniel Brière and Sean Couturier, the sublime Giroux forms the league’s best current crop of Flying Frenchmen. Jakub Voracek, who played junior in the Q, is from Kladno, Tomas Plekanec’s hometown in the Czech Republic … as is Jaromir Jagr, still playing good hockey at the age of 40 and still wearing No. 68 to honour the Prague Spring (which didn’t stop him from playing in the former U.S.S.R.).

Cautionary notes: Obnoxious fans, Eric Lindros, Dave Schultz.

AI: 7.

NASHVILLE PREDATORS

Don’t even look at those unis if you’re nursing a hangover. But the Predators have a great coach in Barry Trotz; four former Canadiens (Francis Bouillon, Hal Gill and the Kostitsyn Brothers) and – in Pekka Rinne, Shea Weber and Ryan Suter – the best goaltender/top D pairing still alive in the playoffs. So they just might win it all.

Cautionary note: Do we really want the Brothers K to get their names engraved on the Cup?

AI: 6.5

NEW JERSEY DEVILS

Now that Roberto Luongo is out of the playoffs and awaiting a trade to Toronto, the great Martin Brodeur carries the banner for St. Léonard goaltending. Dainius Zubrus played for some really lousy Canadiens teams. Stephen Gionta is Brian’s kid brother. And Zach Parise has a non-stop motor.

Cautionary note: Devils still play Jacques Lemaire hockey, which is to the world’s fastest sport what necrophilia is to the world’s most pleasurable activity.

AI: 4

FLORIDA PANTHERS

José Theodore shining in the playoffs? Welcome to 2002. Florida is another inspiring example of how teams can pull off one-year turnarounds (hey, doesn’t Dale Tallon speak French?). Kevin Dineen is a great coach; and if the Panthers go all the way, Canadiens fans won’t feel as bad about Florida sweeping the season series.

Cautionary note: Ozzie Guillen might crash the Cup party.

AI: 4

NEW YORK RANGERS

They were facing elimination Monday night against Ottawa. But when Bob Gainey sees Glen Sather on TV, where would he like to shove that unlit cigar? If the name “Scott Gomez” is on the Cup twice, “Ryan McDonagh” deserves at least one engraving.

So if they win, does Gary Bettman present the Stanley Cup to himself? Dave Tippett is a brilliant coach, and you gotta love Shane Doan. But Raffi Torres? Really?

AI: 2

WASHINGTON CAPITALS

So much talent going to waste in Dale Hunter’s system. And if you adopt Alexander Semin, he’ll just lounge around on the front porch, licking his privates. But Roman Hamrlik gave the Canadiens stalwart service, so we’ll give the Caps an AI of 2 and hope they last at least one more round because that would mean they’ve eliminated the ...

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